Or at least it felt that way most of the time. She loved it, which was how she had become the youngest professor of Ancient Cultures at Columbia University. Of course, Columbia felt very far away from an unnamed island off the coast of Maine. But even she couldn't fathom how she could possibly make hide or hair out of the mess of her Outsider heritage. She stared down at the ancient texts. If she got two words translated an hour, it would be progress. They simply couldn't go further until they got some sort of translator. Someone who could make sense of the gobbledygook in front of her. She stroked her blonde hair, desperately needing a cut, and took a sip of her coffee. If she could go back in time, she'd never ever have come to Maine. Leonardo Gregan, the man whose job she had taken at Columbia after he'd gone on leave and the leader of the Outsiders, sauntered into the room. He'd been awfully cheery all day, and even Ruby, who hadn't known him very long, could tell his current joviality wasn't normal.
